Dominica announces Olympic gold medallist Thea Lafond as Destination Brand Ambassador

Dominica has announced its first Olympic gold medallist Thea LaFond-Gadson as the island’s Destination Brand Ambassador. During a special ceremony held on Friday, Tourism Minister Denise Charles announced the development and lauded the athlete for bringing huge proud to the country. 

Notably, in August 2024, Thea Lafond made history for Dominica by winning the first gold medal for the country in Triple Jump category at the Paris Olympic Games. She recorded 15.02 meters of jump which was also recognised as a world best in 2024.  

While announcing the athlete as the Destination Brand Ambassador, Tourism Minister Charles said that Thea’s deep love for Dominica and her remarkable achievements perfectly aligns with Dominica’s vision of building a world class sustainable tourism destination.  

The Minister added that as the Destination Brand Ambassador, Thea will take the island to new heights by sharing the story with the world and positioning the island not just as a destination but as a home of unmatched beauty, strength and inspiration.  

“Dominica is golden, and with Thea leading the way, we are amplifying Dominica’s global reach—celebrating our unique offerings and inspiring the world to visit and discover why we are the Nature Island of the Caribbean,” she added. 

Tourism Minister recalls significant accolades achieved by Dominica in 2024 

During the ceremony, Tourism Minister further recalled the number of accolades achieved by Dominica in the past year and while noting those milestones, she said that Thea will further assist the Nature Isle to grow on an international stage.  

According to her, BCC UK named Dominica as number 1 in its best 25 destinations for 2025 and likewise, the New York Times called the island a rare island escape where sustainability meets adventure, offering an experience which truly embodies the essence of paradise.  

While recalling these significant milestones, the Minister said, “These are not just words. They are reflections of the world's growing and growing recognition of our nature island.” 

Furthermore, she said that as they enter 2025, Dominica stands proud of the several accolades they have garnered over the years. She emphasised that just last year, the island was named the best dive destination in the Caribbean, while the pristine rainforests, rivers and vibrant Kalinago culture continues to win the hearts of the travellers worldwide.  

She also said that the visitors have described Dominica as a place where adventure and serenity coexist, while others call it the heartbeat of the Caribbean and added that, “These sentiments fuel our determination to continue positioning Dominica as a premier destination globally.” 

While calling the overall progress as ‘extraordinary’, Denise Charles noted that over the last two decades, they have made serious gains as a destination including investments in sustainable tourism, infrastructure and environmental preservation which has set the country apart.  

Talking about hotel developments, the Minister said that they have transformed Dominica into a haven of luxury and comfort while maintaining the eco-friendliness. She highlighted properties like Intercontinental Cabrits Resort and Spa, Jungle Bay, Secret Bay and others and said that these have helped in redefining the travellers’ overall experience.  

With the revolutionary Cable Car to the Boiling Lake, Charles said that it will ensure that everyone will have access to the boiling lake and with this Dominica is poised to offer unprecedented access to the iconic landmarks while creating a truly unique attraction that will further increase visitor arrivals.  

There are also tangible results in visitor arrivals, said the Minister. She noted that these have steadily increased year after year and in 2024, the Nature Isle received the highest arrivals in the history that is 3,50,758 which is a remarkable achievement for the country.  

She noted that this represents 42% more arrivals than 2019 and 14% higher than 2023. Also, in 2024, the island witnessed the highest stay over arrivals i.e. 85,273, which is an impressive 14 percent increase over 2023 and 6 percent over 2019.  

Dominica feels honoured to announce Thea Lafond as Brand Ambassador: Denise Charles 

As Charles announced Lafond as the Destination Brand Ambassador, she expressed her great pride and honour to announce the daughter of the soil and Dominica’s first ever Olympic gold medallist as the destination ambassador. 

She remarked that Thea’s significant achievements on the global stage have brought immense pride to Dominica and her story of resilience and excellence embodies the spirit fo the people and the island.  

Talking about this new partnership, Charles outlined that it will further highlight Dominica as not just a destination, but a home of unmatched beauty, strength and inspiration.  

“From the boiling lake to the vibrant marine life beneath our waters, from the rich culture of the Kalinago people, to the longest trail in the region, the Waitukubuli National Trail, Thea Lafond, our new brand ambassador, will showcase the best of what we have to offer,” she added.  

The Minister also said that the athlete’s engagement will focus on the core tourism pillars, adventure, health and wellness and with this they aim to amplify Dominica’s global reach, celebrating the unique offerings to visitors around the globe.  

Thea Lafond expresses pride to promote her home country 

While expressing her excitement on being the brand ambassador for Dominica, Thea Lafond Gadson said that it is just incredible because all he has ever truly tried to do is to use her athletics to bring glory to Dominica.  

“It is always about making sure that what I consider to be the greatest gem of the Caribbean, to be known to the world. And it just so happens that I was able to do it within my passion, athletics. Talk about the combination of your best of 2 worlds and so that's all I've really been doing. And how lucky am I that I now get to do it officially? I truly believe that Dominica is something special,” said the Olympic gold medallist.  

Talking about her country, she said that beyond the land and culture it is truly the people who makes Dominica so vibrant. She said that she is excited to boast, share and encourage people to come and discover Dominica.